SWORD, JAPANESE, SHOTO, WAKIZASHI, HANDACHI

W1970.918a-b

Signed, Black/Gold Lacquer Scabbard.
Blade Type: SHOTO
Mei: SEKI JU TERUSHIGE
Nagasa: 49.1 cm
Sori: 1.8 cm, slightly saki zori
Sugata: unokubi tsukuri naginata, iori mune
Nakago: 13.4 cm, two mekugi ana, suriage
Kissaki: o
Hada: unclear due to abrasion
Hamon: wide omidare
Horimono: naginata hi

Date: 17th century

This wakizashi blade appears to be a cut-down naginata, although the poor condition of the blade makes a definitive identification impossible. Some sword blades were deliberately made to resemble small cut-down naginata. The signature reads: ‘Terushige, resident of Seki village (made this)’; however, there is no record of a swordsmith of this name having worked in this Mino Province village.

Koshirae
Type: HANDACHI
Saya: black and tan lacquer with ground pearl shell over wood. Iron ishi dzuki, matching shibabiki missing
Tsuka: white same bound with gold coloured silk tape
Fuchi/kabuto gane: plain iron
Tsuka ai: gilt gambolling deer
Tsuba: slightly naga-maru-gata shape, pierced sukashi design of tomoe.
Dimensions: 7.1 x 7.3 x 0.5 cm

Overall length: 72.0 cm

Date: 19th century

Ref; TROTTER George, Japanese Swords and Fittings in the Western Australian Museum, Western Australian Museum, Perth 1989, No.41 ,
page 55

Department: 

History Department

Collection

History Collection

Collection Item Data

Accession Number: W1970.918a-b
Accession Date: 18 Apr 1967

Material

Lacquer/Woodb - scabbard
Pearl/Shellb - scabbard
Iron/Metalb - scabbard
Skina - sword
Silk/Textilea - sword
Iron/Metala - sword
Gilta - sword

Measurement

length720mm
length494mmnagasa
length134mmnakago

 

 

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Western Australian Museum Collections https://museum.wa.gov.au/online-collections/content/W1970.918a-b
Accessed 20 Jun 2025

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